Drum handling attachment for trucks



. Nov. 26, 1 J. F. E. ERICSON DRUM HANDLING ATTACHMENT FOR TRUCKS 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 'Filed Sept. 29, 1955 INVENTOR. JOHN F.E. emcxsou AT ORNEYS Nov. 26, 1957 J. F. E. ERICSON 2,

DRUM HANDLING ATTACHMENT FOR TRUCKS- Filed Se pt. 29, 1955 3 Sheets-Shet 2 JOHN F. E. ERICSON IN V EN TOR.

ATTO RNEYS q 1957 J. F. E. ERICSON 2,814, 03

DRUM HANDLING ATTACBMENT FOR TRUCKS Filed Sept. 29. 1955 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 INVENTOR. JOHN F. E. ERICKSON a" ATTO NEYS DRUM HANDLING ATTACHMENT FOR TRUCKS John F. E. Ericson, Skokie, Ill., assignor to Marvel Industries, Inc, Evanston, Ill., a corporation of Iliinois Application September 29, 1955, Serial No. 537,433

7 Claims. (Cl. 214-654) This invention relates to improvements in handling attachments for lift or hand trucks and more particularly relates to such handling attachments adapted for lifting, transporting and stacking drums, barrels and the like.

A principal object of the invention is to provide a simple, novel and improved form of gripping attachment for gripping and lifting drums, barrels and the like.

Another object of the invention is to provide a simplified form of gripping jaw arrangement for attachment to a hand or lift truck so arranged as to grip, transport and lift drums, barrels and the like.

Still another and more detailed object of the invention is to provide a simplified form of drum lifting device for attachment to the vertical lifting element of an industrial truck so arranged as to come into gripping engagement with the drum or barrel upon vertical movement of the gripping jaws with respect to the drum or barrel.

These and other objects of the invention will appear from time to time as the following specification proceeds and with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Figure 1 is a view in side elevation of a drum handling attachment constructed in accordance with my invention, fragmentarily showing a lift truck by broken lines and showing the attachment on the truck supporting a drum in vertically spaced relation with respect to the ground;

Figure 2 is a plan view of the attachment shown in Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a view in side elevation of the casing and clamping jaws with one side wall of the casing broken away and the end walls of the casing shown in section showing the gripping jaws in a retracted position;

Figure 4 is a view somewhat similar to Figure 3 but showing the gripping jaws in gripping engagement with a drum;

Figure 5 is a front end view of the gripping jaws and casing, with the jaws in position to grippingly engage a drum; and

Figures 6, 7, 8 and 9 are diagrammatic views illustrating the stages of automatically gripping the bead of the drum by the gripping jaws of the attachment upon engagement of the lower jaw with the wall of the drum and vertical lifting movement of the gripping jaws and easing therefor.

In the embodiment of my invention illustrated in Figure 1, of the drawings, I have shown the forward end portion of an industrial truck 10 by broken lines, having a gripping attachment 11 constructed in accordance with my invention attached thereto and supporting a drum in vertically spaced relation with respect to the ground.

While I have shown a truck of an industrial type commonly used to transport material from place to place and to lift the same for stacking, it should be understood that the attachment of my invention is adapted for use on hand trucks of various types as well as power operated industrial trucks.

As herein shown, the truck 10 has a bar 12 vertically guided at its forward end and moved vertically, prefer- 2,8ldA03 Patented Nov. 26, 1957 ably by hydraulic motors (not shown) operatively connected with said truck through slides 13 guided for movement along inwardly facing guides 14, in a manner well known to those skilled in the art so not herein shown or described in detail. The transverse lift bar 12 is adapted to have a supporting frame structure 15 for the drum gripping and lifting device 20 for holding the same in position and lifting the same upon vertical movement of said bar. The frame sturcture 15 is shown as including two laterally spaced vertically extending angles 16 having legs extending inwardly toward each other in parallel relation with respect to the front face of the bar 12 and adapted to abut the same. The frame structure 15 is supported on the bar 12 on an inwardly extending angle 18 secured to the facing legs of the angles 16 at the outer end of one leg and having a vertical leg positioned to engage behind the bar 12, as shown in my Patent No.- 2,698,107, dated October 29, 1954, and no part of my present invention so not herein shown or described further. A cradle 19 may be provided at the lower end of the frame structure 15 to engage the wall of the drum or barrel and hold the same in parallel relation with respect to the angles 16, when grippingly engaged by the clamping device 2i).

The clamping device 24) is supported in extended relation with respect to the frame structures 15 on a carrier 21 adjustably movable along said frame structure and held in position on said frame structure by means of a locking pin 23.

The carrier 21 is similar to that shown in my Patent No. 2,698,107 and includes generally a channel member 24 guided within the angle 16, with its flanges facing the clamping device 20. Two spaced parallel links 25 and 26 are pivotally connected to the flanges of the channel 24 at their inner ends and extend along opposite sides of the clamping device 20 and are pivotally connected to opposite side walls 27 of a casing 29 for the clamping device 20 on pivot pins 30. Tension springs 31 are provided to bias the clamping device 20 in parallel relation with respect to the carrier 21 as in my Patent No. 2,698,107, and are connected at one end to a pin 32 carried in the flanges of the channel 24 and at their opposite ends to a pin 33 within the side walls 27 of the casing 29.

The clamping device 20 comprises an upper jaw 35 and a lower jaw 36. The lower jaw 36 has an arm 37 depending therefrom pivotally and slidably carried between the side walls 27 and the casing 29 on a pivot pin 59, extending through said arm and slidably mounted at its ends in slots 40 in the side walls 27 of the casing 29. As herein shown, the slots 40 are disposed adjacent the lower end portions of the side walls 27 and extend angularly upwardly and rearwardly with respect to the advance or forward faces of said side walls. The arm 37 has a rear inclined face 41 at its lower end and slidably engaging a pin 42 mounted in opposite side walls 27 and limiting forward pivotal movement of the lower jaw so when the jaws 35 and 36 are in their retracted position with respect to the casing 29, as shown in Figure 3. The pin 39 and arm 37 are biased toward the upper end of the slot 40 by a tension spring 43. The spring 43 is connected at one end to an car 44 extending rearwardly from the arm 37 adjacent the lower end thereof, and at its opposite end to an attachment member 45 extending between the side walls 27 and secured thereto.

The upper jaw 35 is of a generally hook-like form and has a rearwardly extending arm 47 pivoted between the side walls 27 on a transverse pivot pin 49 mounted at its ends in said side walls adjacent the rear end portion thereof and intermediate the top and bottom of the casing. A pair of links 56) are pivotally connected at one end on the pivot pin 39 on opposite sides of the arm 37, and extend along opposite sides of the arm 47, and are connected to said arm on a pivot pin 51 carried in said arm at a point spaced upwardly from the pin 49 a distance sufficient to obtain the required leverage to grip the jaw 35 with the inside of a bead 53 of a drum or barrel 54 upon lifting movement of the casing 20, as will hereinafter more clearly appear as the specification proceeds, A transverse pin 55 connected at its ends in the side walls 26 serves, to limit downward movement of the jaw 35.

With the construction just described, when the casing 29 is moved by a truck or the like and is located to, posi tion the jaw 36 beneath a head 53 of a drum 54 and the casing is then moved in a vertical direction, to positively engage the jaw 36 beneath the bead 53, the pin 39 will move downwardly along the slots 40 and the jaw 36 will tend to pivot outwardly. Movement of the pin 39 downwardly along the slots 40. against the tension spring 43 will effect pivotal movement of the arm 47 and jaw 35 in a clockwise direction through the links 50 to bring the jaw 35 into gripping engagement with the inside of the bead 53 of the drum 54. As the casing 29 is moved upwardly, the weight of the drum on the jaw 36 will grip the jaw 35 tighter with the inside of the bead of the drum and effect lifting of the drum 54 above the ground for stacking or transportation.

With this construction so far described, the casing 29 must be positioned so that the jaw 36 will first engage beneath the bead of the drum prior to lifting movement of the casing in order for the jaw 36 to engage beneath the bead of the drum and clampingly move the jaw 35 into engagement with the inside of the head of the drum, to lift and transport the same. Such a gripping device may be adapted to hand trucks where the gripping device is always in the same general location for particular types of drums to be transported.

In my present invention, however, I provide a simple means rendering the gripping device 26 automatic so it may grip and lift a drum merely by engagement of the device with the wall of the drum, and vertical movement of the device along the drum to position the lower clamp ing jaw 36 beneath the bead of the drum so it will come into gripping engagement with the drum upon upward lifting movement thereof.

In order to attain automatic operation of my clamping device, I provide spaced abutment members 57 which extend upwardly from the jaw along opposite sides thereof and along opposite sides of the jaw 35. As herein shown, the abutment members 57 are in the general form of a C and each have forwardly facing abutment faces 59 engageable with the wall or head of the drum for retractibly moving the lower jaw 36 with respect to the bead of the drum until the bead comes into the open portion of the C and is thus located to be engaged beneath the head of the drum, upon upward lifting movement thereof, as shown in Figures 6, 7, 8 and 9 of the drawings.

In the operation of gripping the bead of a drum for lifting and transportation, the truck may be moved into position to engage the abutment faces 59 with the drum, the springs 31 maintaining the casing 20 in extended relation with respect to its carriage 21 and the frame structure 15.

As the casing 20 or abutment faces 59 are engaged with the wall of a drum, the parallel links 25 and 26 will move downwardly against the springs 31 to yield and maintain the lower jaw 36 in position to engage beneath the bead of the drum. If, for example, the abutment faces 59 should come into engagement with the head 53 of the drum 54, as in Figure 6, the jaws 36 will be retractibly moved within the casing 29 against the bias of the spring 43. Then upon upward lifting movement of the casing 20 effected by upward lifting movement of the frame structure by the lift truck, the jaw 36 being biased to extend from the advance face of the casing 29, will be positioned by the C-shaped camming surfaces of the abutment member 57 to come into engagement with the bead 53 of the drum 54 beneath the bead, upon upward lifting movement of the casing 29, effected by upward lifting movement of the frame structure 15 by the lift truck. Further upward lifting movement of the casing 20 will engage the jaw 36 beneath the head of the drum and pivot the jaw 35 in a clockwise direction to engage the top surface of the end of the drum, as shown in Figure 8, Continued lifting movement of the casing 20 will effect outward movement of the arm 37 and jaw 36 with respect to the casing 20, the weight of the drum retractibly moving said casing to rest on the carriage 21. This will bring the upper jaw 35 into engagement with the inside of the bead of the drum and firmly grip the drum for lifting and transporting the same where desired.

When it is desired to release the drum, it is only nec essary to set the drum on the floor or on a pallet, or on another drum where the drums are being stacked. The casing 20 may then be moved downwardly by downward lifting movement of the frame structure 15 until the weight of the drum is relieved from the lower jaw 36. The spring 43 will then bias said jaw, the arm 37 and the pin 39 toward the upper ends of the slots 40. This will effect retractible movement of the jaw 35 in a counterclockwise direction and release the jaws 36 and 35 from the drum as the truck is, backed away from the drum, the springs 31, 31 extending the casing 20 with respect to the frame structure. 15 and carriage 21.

It will be understood that modifications and variations in the present invention may be effected without departing from the spirit and scope of the novel concepts thereof.

I claim as my invention:

1. A gripping device for lifting drums and the like comprising a vertically extending open ended casing, two opposed gripping jaws carried by said casing for extensible movement with respect thereto to engage beneath and within the bead of a drum, a first of said jaws being adapted to engage beneath the bead of a drum and a second of said jaws being adapted to engage within the head of a drum, an arm extending downwardly from the first of said jaws, a vertically extending slot in said casing adjacent the lower end thereof and inclined inwardly with respect to said casing from its lower to its upper end, a pin carried by said arm having slidable engagement with said slot and forming a pivotal and slidable mounting for said arm and first jaw, a pivot for said second jaw at a point spaced above the slidable pivot for said first jaw and rearwardly therefrom, a link pivotally connected from said pin to said second jaw at a point spaced adjacent but outwardly from the pivot thereof, and a tension spring connected between said casing and said arm and biasing said pin in upwardly extending relation with respect to said slot and said second jaw in retracted relation with respect to said casing.

2. A gripping device for drums and the like comprising a vertically extending open ended casing, two gripping jaws carried by said casing, a first being adapted to engage beneath the head of a drum and a second being adapted to engage within the head of a drum, an arm extending from said first jaw, a generally vertically extending slot in said casing adjacent the lower end thereof and inclined rearwardly with respect to said casing as it extends upwardly therealong, a pin carried by said arm and having slidable engagement with said slot, said arm having a lower abutment face facing toward the rear of said casing, a stop pin in said casing and a spring connected between said casing and arm and biasing said abutment face into engagement with said stop pin and also biasing said first mentioned pin toward the upper end of said slot, a fixed pivot for the second of said jaws at a point spaced a substantial distance above said slot and rearwardly therefrom, and a link connected between said pivot pin for said arm and the second of said jaws for effecting pivotal movement of the second of said jaws into engagement with the bead of a drum upon engagement of the first of said jaws within the head of a drum and upward lifting movement thereof.

3. A gripping device for lifting drums and the like comprising a vertically extending open ended casing, two gripping jaws carried by said casing, a first being adapted to engage beneath the bead of a drum and a second being adapted to engage within the bead of the drum, an arm extending downwardly from the first jaw member, a slidable and pivotal connection for said arm on said casing at a point spaced downwardly from said jaw member, a fixed pivotal connection for said second jaw member on said casing, a link connecting said arm to the second of said jaw members whereby engagement of the first of said jaw members beneath the bead of a drum and upward lifting movement of said casing will pivot the second of said jaw members to engage within the bead of the drum, and an abutment member connected with the first of said jaws and extending upwardly therefrom for engagement with a drum to maintain the first of said jaws into position to engage beneath the bead of a drum upon upward lifting movement of said casing and the passing of said abutment above the head of the drum.

4. A gripping device for lifting drums and the like comprising a vertically extending open ended casing, two gripping jaws carried by said casing, a first being adapted to engage beneath the bead of a drum and a second being adapted to engage within the bead of the drum, an arm extending downwardly from the firs-t jaw member, a slidable and pivotal connection for said arm on said casing at a point spaced downwardly from said jaw member, a fixed pivotal connection for said second jaw member on said casing, a link connecting said arm to the second of said jaw members whereby engagement of the first of said jaw members beneath the bead of a drum and upward lifting movement of said casing will pivot the second of said jaw members to engage within the bead of the drum, and an abutment member secured to the first of said jaws and extending upwardly therefrom and having an abutment face facing outwardly of said casing in position to come into abutting engagement with a drum upon movement of said casing toward the drum and having an open portion between said abutment face and jaw, accommodating movement of said jaw toward the bead of a drum upon upward lifting movement said casing and positioning the first of said jaws to engage beneath the bead of a drum upon upward lifting movement of said casing.

5. A gripping device for drums and the like comprising a vertically extending open ended casing, two gripping jaws carried by said casing, a first being adapted to engage beneath the bead of a drum and a second being adapted to engage within the bead of a drum, an arm extending from said first jaw, a generally vertically extending slot in said casing adjacent the lower end thereof and inclined rearwardly with respect to said casing as it extends upwardly therealong, a pin carried by said arm and having slidable engagement with said slot, said arm having a lower abutment face facing toward the rear of said casing, a stop pin in said casing and a spring connected between said casing and arm and biasing said abutment face into engagement with said stop pin and also biasing said first mentioned pin toward the upper end of said slot, a fixed pivot for the second of said jaws at a point spaced a substantial distance above said slot and rearwardly therefrom, a link connected between said pivot pin for said arm and the secondof said jaws for effecting pivotal movement of the second of said jaws into engagement within the bead of a drum upon engagement of the first of said jaws beneath the bead of the drum and upward lifting movement thereof, and an abutment member connected with the first of said jaws and having an abutment face spaced above said jaw and a central recessed portion having guiding engagement with the bead of a drum upon upward lifting movement of said casing and positioning the first of said jaws to engage beneath the bead of a drum as said casing moves vertically.

6. In a drum handling device, a vertically extending frame adapted for attachment to the lifting bar of a power truck, a clamping device carried by said frame for lifting engagement with the head of a drum and including a casing having two vertically spaced gripping jaws movably mounted therein for engagement beneath and within the bead of a drum, a pair of spaced links for suspending said casing from said frame and a spring connected between said casing and frame and biasing said casing in extended relation with respect to said frame but accommodating said casing to move inwardly toward said frame into engagement therewith upon gripping engagement of said jaws with the bead of a drum and upward lifting movement of said frame and casing, a first of said jaws being adapted to engage beneath the head of a drum and having an arm extending downwardly therefrom pivotally and slidably guided in said casing for vertical movement with respect thereto, a stop limiting outward movement of said arm and first jaw with respect to said casing, a spring biasing said arm and first jaw in upwardly extending relation with respect to said casing, a second of said jaws being pivotally mounted within said casing for movement about a first fixed pivot, a link connecting said arm with the second of said jaws to effect movement thereof into gripping engagement with the bead of a drum upon engagement of the first of said jaws beneath the bead of a drum, and abutment means connected with the first of said jaws and spaced upwardly therefrom for abutting engagement with the wall of a drum to position the first of said jaws to engage beneath the head of a drum upon upward lifting movement of said casing.

7. In a drum handling device, a vertically extending frame adapted for attachment to the lifting bar of a power truck and the like, a clamping device carried by said frame including a casing having two vertically spaced gripping jaws movably mounted therein, a linkage arrangement suspending said casing from said frame for movement toward and from said frame, spring means connected between saidframe and casing and biasing said casing in extended relation with respect to said frame and accommodating said casing to move inwardly toward said frame into engagement therewith upon engagement of said jaws with the bead of a drum and upward lifting movement of the drum thereby, a first of said jaws being adapted to engage beneath the bead of a drum and a second of said jaws being adapted to engage within the bead of a drum, an arm extending downwardly from said first jaw, a generally vertically extending slot in said casing, a pin guiding said arm for movement along said slot, a stop pin in said casing having slidable engagement with said arm adjacent the lower end thereof, a spring connected between said casing and arm and biasing said arm and pin in upwardly extended relation with respect to said slot and said arm in engagement with said stop pin, a pivotal mounting for said second jaw in said casing at a point spaced adjacent the rear end of said casing and above said slot, a link connecting said arm with said second jaw for moving said second jaw to engage within the bead of a drum upon engagement of said first jaw beneath the bead of a drum and upward lifting movement of said casing, and means for effecting automatic engagement of said first jaw beneath the bead of a drum upon movement of said casing toward a drum and upward and vertical movement thereof with respect to the drum comprising an abutment member connected with said first jaw and having an abutment face spaced thereabove and extending vertically with respect thereto and having a recessed portion between said jaw and abutment face for receiving the bead of a drum and guiding said lower jaw into engagement with the head of a drum upon upward lifting movement of said casing effected by vertical movement of said frame.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,635,775 Ernest Apr. 21, 1953 2,682,962 Greenawalt July 6, 1954 2,689,663 Shramek Sept. 21, 1954 2,698,107 Ericson Dec. 28, 1954 

